Marika Ray's Blog, page 2

“Annie and Blaze were … the sexual tension they had from the very beginning was fantastic!” – Kelly

“I’m not sure that I’ve ever read a couple more perfect for each other than Blaze and Annie! Brother’s best friend and grumpy/sunshine, there is just something about them together that made me swoon. It didn’t hurt that the tension between them was palpable from the second they see each other!” – Booked On Lattes

“Grumpy vs sunshiny is my catnip and I’m having a blast reading this.” – Sonja

“I didn’t know Marika could write a hero I loved more than Ace Hellman, or any of the other boys from Auburn Hill, but I have just been proven wrong! Blaze Hellman just utterly and absolutely stole my heart and fulfilled all of my wildest closet romantic dreams!” – Savannah

“I’m not quite sure how to convey how much I love these two. Blaze and Annie…OMG.” – Gale

Ahh, Blaze Hellman. You’re gonna love him, I guarantee it.

Brother’s best friend romance with a little forced proximity on the side
Hero returns home wounded, emotionally and physically
opposites attract…and burn hot!
grumpy hero and the talkative veterinarian he shouldn’t want
small town RomCom hilarity

𝐁𝐥𝐮𝐫𝐛
Living with my older brother’s best friend wasn’t even my worst idea lately.

Keeping it a secret from my brother was on the list too. Oh, and actually falling (literally) for Blaze Hellman—when every frown clearly said to stay away—was most definitely at the top of the list.

I was kind of a genius normally. I’d managed to graduate early and was about to open my own veterinary clinic in my hometown of Hell. I clearly had my life together.

Until Blaze came back to town, moving slower than a sloth on crutches, more wounded emotionally than physically. We ended up bonding over stray dogs, exes from hell, and oddly enough, shared grief.

But helping him get his life back together could cost me my heart…and destroy his friendship with my brother. Will the heat between us create a situation that breaks all the bro codes?

Download in Kindle Unlimited!

The post Bro Code Hell is LIVE & in KU! appeared first on Author Marika Ray.

Book #1 in the Hellman Brothers series.

“It’s fitting this is a firefighter book because it is five alarm hot!” Booked on Lattes – Goodreads Review

“I’m still fanning myself from Ace and Addy!! They have soooooooo much chemistry going from enemies to lovers. This was a great book to start off a new series in Hell and introduce the Hellman brothers. I can’t wait to read about them!” Amanda Rozell – Goodreads Review

“If I could give this alllllll the stars, I would!” Stephenie West McNeil, Goodreads Review

“A-MAZ-ING!!!! What an awesome start to a new series” Rebecca PA – Goodreads Review

hometown hero and the girl who’s hated him since kindergarten

opposites attract…and burn hot!

grumpy firefighter and the ray of sunshine hippie girl

small town RomCom hilarity

The town’s hottest firefighter just put out the fire in my pants. Literally.

Ace Hellman. Star quarterback. Grumpy-as-hell firefighter. Chief pain in my ass.

He’s beyond arrogant, inducing women to fake emergencies just to see his sexy swagger as he comes to save them. Not me though. That fire was a total accident. I swear. He and I actually have a long history of hating each other, starting with him ruining my live performance of the Nutcracker in kindergarten and ending with me being the only woman in town under forty whom he hasn’t dated. I wear that title with pride.

Now that we’ve been roped into teaching a first aid class together, things can’t get more awkward. He’s determined to prove me wrong at every turn, and I’m determined to stop picturing him without his coveralls. I refuse to hide who I am, and Ace stands for everything I’m against.

He’s so wrong for me the whole town knows it. So why do I feel like we start a fire every time we’re together?

The post Grumpy As Hell is LIVE & in KU! appeared first on Author Marika Ray.

HOLD ON TO YOUR TATAS, IT'S ABOUT TO GET MERRY.

Get a head start on the holiday spirit by reading for a great cause! Nearly twenty of today’s most entertaining rom-com authors have teamed up to sell #Books4Boobs. This collection of holiday shorts ranges from sweet to steamy and promises to entertain. 100% of proceeds will benefit the Young Survivor Coalition, an international organization supporting people ages 40 and under who are diagnosed with breast cancer.

Grab your copy for only #99cents and why not gift one to a friend as well? --> https://books2read.com/tinsel-and-tatas

Featuring:
Wilder for the Win by Serena Bell
Last One Gets the Booby Prize by Kilby Blades
Tattooed Tatas by Kameron Claire
Mixing Merrymas by Dylann Crush
A Trivia Pursuit by Hope Ellis
Two Nights to Believe by Melonie Johnson
Tits the Season by Tawdra Kandle
Decidedly with Tinsel by Stina Lindenblatt
The Great Christmas Race by Elizabeth Lynx
All I Want is You by Claire Marti
Wreath this Ring by MK Meredith
Star Bright by Susannah Nix
Ta Ta To Heartbreak by Tracey Pedersen
Pretty Packages by Marika Ray
Rock, Paper, Santa by Piper Rayne
Tinsel Bomb by Arell Rivers
A Brit Under the Mistletoe by Brenda St John Brown
Booby Trapped by Sylvie Stewart

“This book probably has one of the sexiest beginnings!”

Amanda, Goodreads Review

“…the heat level was FREAKING HOT!!!”

Kelly, Goodreads Review

“This rom-com was fun, emotional, relatable and impossible not to fall in love with.”

Gladys, Goodreads Review

“I loved this story so much!!”

Lori, Goodreads Review

It was only supposed to be a one night stand…

You could say I was a successful twenty-four year old, if you looked at my house sitting on the edge of a cliff with killer views of the Pacific Ocean. Or my bank account with seven figures from my coaching business. But according to my frenemy, the girl who invited me to her bachelorette party at an exclusive resort in Lake Tahoe, I was just a sad, lonely girl without a man by my side. I’d show her who was living the dream by finding a tall, dark, and handsome man to rock my world for one night.

I accomplish everything I set out to do in life, and that dark haired stranger was no exception. Unfortunately, I didn’t plan on him standing on my doorstep three days later, calling me his wife.

It was only supposed to be one hot and pleasurable night. He wasn’t supposed to ruin my business with his risky proposition to save his own. And I definitely wasn’t supposed to develop feelings for the cowboy who knows how to wear a pair of jeans. They say to bring your A-game to the negotiating table, but we may find out the hard way there’s no winning in love….or one night stands.

I must read this right now!

EXCERPT
A throat clearing had me looking back upstairs to where Remington stood, arms crossed over his impressive chest. “Are you done freaking out yet or should I take a nap?” Heat flooded the skin from my chest upward. I hated being out of control. I hated anything disrupting my timeline, my schedule, or my carefully laid-out plans. That’s why sleeping with Remington was supposed to stick to one night while on vacation. He wasn’t supposed to bleed over into my actual life.

I gaped at him, trying to come up with words to describe why his being here was putting me off-kilter, but all I could think about was how good he looked with that T-shirt struggling to span his muscles and the damn jeans that fit his thick tree-trunk legs like a well-worn glove. 

It hit me like a scathing review read aloud in public. I could get addicted to this man in the span of a single orgasm, and I’d already had more than a few with him. I had to get rid of him. ASAP.

“We need an annulment,” I stated, never more certain of anything in my life.

Remington barreled down the stairs, his boots a louder sound than my house had heard since I bought it six months ago. He barely fit through the doorways. The furniture looked doll sized compared to him. He didn’t fit in here. He didn’t fit in with my life. He had to go.

“Well, now. Let’s not be hasty,” he drawled, coming close enough to cup his hand on my arm. I pulled my arm back, afraid a simple touch could lead to…well, hell. He’d already taken me in a public bathroom and we’d gotten married, so what could a touch lead to that we hadn’t already done?

“Ugh!” I practically yelled, seething inside. “Don’t start that good-ol’-boy drawl with me, Remington Roth. My knees won’t buckle like the girls back home.”
He flat-out grinned, the a–hole. “I really wish they would. I’d like to see you on your knees.”

Download Now!

The post One Night Bride – LIVE in KU! 💍⛪ appeared first on Author Marika Ray.

The cover is hot, I’ll give you that. But what can I expect from this new small town RomCom, Marika?

Two alpha cops partner up…feel that workplace tension…eek!

A forbidden romance between partners

A secret past & a heartfelt family saga

Equal parts laughs and swoon!

“This was so good!!! It’s adorably sweet, deliciously sexy, hilariously entertaining, and delightfully satisfying!” – Goodreads Review

“Ridin’ Solo generates enough heat to steam up your windows and delivers more laughs than I can count. It’s romantic comedy gold.” – Goodreads Review

At a measly five foot three, Captain Oakley Waldo seemed just fine riding solo at work and in her personal life. But when I accidentally burst in on her in a, shall we say, compromising position, she’ll have to work double time to keep the tension between us at a low simmer.

My mission as her new partner? To bring out the wild woman I know is there underneath the starched uniform. Only problem is, she seems dead set on discovering the past I vowed to keep hidden away.

With stolen moments of forbidden passion in between arrests, creative uses for those handcuffs, and four meddling sisters who won’t butt out of Oakley’s life, this law enforcement partnership is set to explode!

Grab it now in KU!!

Grab the first book in the Sisters From Hell series and get to know the five daughters of Chief Waldo….

The post Ridin’ Solo is LIVE! appeared first on Author Marika Ray.

It's here!!!! Behold the gorgeous new cover for Ridin' Solo, book 1 in the Sisters From Hell series. Can we just appreciate some gorgeous man-chest for a moment??


Huge thanks to Ben Shook (cover model) and Rachel Connolly (cover artist) for making this cover extra special. And by extra special we mean drool worthy.

We're staying in the small town of Auburn Hill, aka Hell, but this new spin-off series is all about the Waldo sisters. Daddy is the chief of police, which means his grown daughters' shenanigans are causing him some gray hair. We'll keep reminding him it's all worth it if it ends in an HEA, amiright?

Okay! Here's all the important stuff:

Ridin' Solo is coming APRIL 8th!! You can grab it on preorder right now:
Ridin' Solo

WHAT IS RIDING SOLO ABOUT?

✔️ Hot alpha cop partners up with hot heroine cop...I can already feel the tension...eek!
✔️ A forbidden romance between partners
✔️ A secret past
✔️ Equal parts laughs and swoon!

DO I NEED TO HAVE READ ANY BOOK BEFORE RIDIN' SOLO?
Nope! This is a complete standalone! If you like the small town however, you can go back and read the Jobs From Hell series which takes place in Hell also.

WILL IT BE AVAILABLE IN KINDLE UNLIMITED?
It sure will. Day of release it will be in KU.

WAIT! IS THIS AMELIA'S SISTER FROM UNFRIEND ME??
Yes!! Amelia has four sisters and each of them get their own HEA in this series, starting with Oakley in Ridin' Solo.

Grab them all on preorder or read in KU!

Book 2 - One Night Bride
smarturl.it/onenightbride
It was only supposed to be one hot and pleasurable night letting my hair down on vacation. I didn’t plan on him standing on my doorstep three days later calling me his wife.

Book 3 - Smarty Pants
smarturl.it/smartypantssister
I'm walking down the aisle to my professor...so why can't I stop looking at his T.A.? I think I made a miscalculation...

Book 4 - Ex Best Thing
smarturl.it/exbestthing
First rule of having sisters: don't date your sister's ex.
Oops.

It’s here!!!! Behold the gorgeous new cover for Ridin’ Solo, book 1 in the Sisters From Hell series. Can we just appreciate some gorgeous man-chest for a moment??

Huge thanks to Ben Shook (cover model) and Rachel Connolly (cover artist) for making this cover extra special. And by extra special we mean drool worthy.

We’re staying in the small town of Auburn Hill, aka Hell, but this new spin-off series is all about the Waldo sisters. Daddy is the chief of police, which means his grown daughters’ shenanigans are causing him some gray hair. We’ll keep reminding him it’s all worth it if it ends in an HEA, amiright?

Okay! Here’s all the important stuff:

Ridin’ Solo is coming APRIL 8th!!

Grab it on PreOrder right now!

WHAT IS RIDIN’ SOLO ABOUT?

Hot alpha cop partners up with hot heroine cop…I can already feel the tension…eek!
A forbidden romance between partners
A secret past
Equal parts laughs and swoon!

Add it to Goodreads TBR

DO I NEED TO HAVE READ ANY BOOK BEFORE RIDIN’ SOLO?
Nope! This is a complete standalone! If you like the small town however, you can go back and read the Jobs From Hell series which takes place in Hell also.

WILL IT BE AVAILABLE IN KINDLE UNLIMITED?
It sure will. Day of release it will be in KU.

WAIT! IS THIS AMELIA’S SISTER FROM UNFRIEND ME??
Yes!! Amelia has four sisters and each of them get their own HEA in this series, starting with Oakley in Ridin’ Solo.

Grab them all on preorder or read in KU!

Book 2 – One Night Bride
smarturl.it/onenightbride
It was only supposed to be one hot and pleasurable night letting my hair down on vacation. I didn’t plan on him standing on my doorstep three days later calling me his wife.

Book 3 – Smarty Pants
smarturl.it/smartypantssister
I’m walking down the aisle to my professor…so why can’t I stop looking at his T.A.? I think I made a miscalculation…

Book 4 – Ex Best Thing
smarturl.it/exbestthing
First rule of having sisters: don’t date your sister’s ex.
Oops.

The post COVER REVEAL for RIDIN’ SOLO! appeared first on Author Marika Ray.

Download Now!

The side-hustling small-town girl finds herself the main obsession when it comes to the mayor’s rich son. Too bad she’s hated him since he humiliated her in high school.

Hazel Redding
I’m so poor my side hustle has a side hustle, but what I lack in dollars, I make up for in enthusiasm. My latest gig might be a little embarrassing as a deodorant sniffer, but my mantra is that life is one big party. Especially when I discover gold one day in the hills of my small town. The only downside? The brooding rich boy who broke my heart in high school is the owner of that land, and we’ve had a strict policy of hating each other ever since.

Rip Bennett
I have a need to right some wrongs, but that requires coming out of the shadows of my father, the town mayor. Hazel seems like just what I need to bring some sunshine to my life, but will the lure of riches and criminal family members pull us apart? I might have to get my own hustle on to fight for her heart.

“The grumpy one falls for the sunshine one!!!!!!!! This is my favorite Jobs from Hell book, and I had no idea they could get better! I couldn’t put this book down. Second-chance, enemies to lovers, opposites attract, mysteries to solve, villains to be foiled, crazy grandmas, best friends, and cats!!! Amazing!”

Goodreads Review

The Jobs From Hell series is complete!

Grab the whole series in Kindle Unlimited!

Love BankUber BossyUnfriend MeSide HustleMan Glitter – companion novella for FREE here!Excerpts from Side Hustle

If someone as bright and happy and colorful as Hazel could find something in me to love, then so could others. So could I.

I was weird. I knew this. Accepted it. But it still hurt to feel so disconnected from everyone else. I didn’t blame them, due to the aforementioned weirdness, but I also yearned to be accepted and needed and wanted. I’d just always felt different. When everyone got loud and talkative, I got quiet and observed. When everyone smiled and cheered, I frowned, not understanding why everyone was so damn happy. I was a dark shade of gray in a technicolor world. – Rip Bennett

Rip must have felt it too because in the next breath, his lips were on mine, his hand angling my head exactly where he wanted me. There was nothing shy or tentative about this kiss unlike when we were kids. It was the kiss of a grown man on a mission.

The post Side Hustle is LIVE! appeared first on Author Marika Ray.

Are you #Nuts4Books? This weekend is your last chance to grab these 20 steamy holiday rom-coms for only 99 pennies. The price goes up next week!

Huge thanks to everyone who’s ordered a copy of the Jingle Balls set so far! We’ve raised quite a bit of $ for the Testicular Cancer Awareness Foundation but we know we can do more!

Snag your copy here: https://books2read.com/jingleballs

Excerpt from Deck the Halls With Balls by Marika Ray:

“If that stupid scientist had just called me back, I wouldn’t be in this mess,” I muttered, thinking back on the three long-winded messages I’d left for the head scientist over at the FART facility. Yeah, that’s right. I did a double take too when I first heard the name for the facility in Auburn Hill. Technically, it was the Fragrance & Aroma Reformulation Testing facility, but that was quite a mouthful. Round here, we just called it FART. Naturally.

Large groups of citizens were still pouring inside the huge white tent in Bennett Park. They set all of us vendors up in large booths on the perimeter, leaving the center of the tent for the tables and chairs and china and crystal. I rushed to top off the cups I had waiting, filled with a paltry half finger of Kombrewcha. I didn’t go as much as eight ounces like Hazel demanded. Figured six would be a nice compromise. Maybe I could come up with a slogan about how you have to sip it, not slam it.

“Good afternoon, Mayor Bennett. Mrs. Bennet.” I nodded to the couple as they strolled by my booth, each grabbing a cup and sipping as they went. A trickle of sweat dripped down my spine. I needed to get on that slogan before anyone else took a cup.

Maybe Made for sipping; this isn’t a frat party. No, too offensive to frat partiers. They were my brothers in spirit. How about Sip that Kombrewcha, or the alcohol will getcha! Dammit. No, that was too preachy and questionable in the rhyming department. Sip, don’t slug or you’ll be sick as a bug. Okay, the slogans were getting worse. I was disappointed in myself. I could do better if there wasn’t so much pressure from a crazed Hazel.

“Kombrewcha. Hmm. Sounds familiar,” a quiet voice said from across my booth. I lifted my gaze, surprised to see a youthful woman dressed in a light blue dress that went to mid-calf, a sweater covering her shoulders. Despite the overly conservative garb, she was pretty. You know, if you liked the nerdy kind of girl. Which I didn’t, not because of how they looked, but because the smart girls always rolled their eyes at me, dismissing me as the idiot I was most of the time.

“Yep, we’re new in town. If you like to combine imbibing with your health goals, we’re your best bet. The health benefits of kombucha and the sanity-restoring characteristics of a beer.” A little long for a slogan, but it would do for now.

One eyebrow winged above her dark glasses, like she wasn’t quite convinced. Then her expression cleared, and she snapped her fingers. “Hey, are you that guy who called my office and left weird messages about bacteria taking over his lifelong dreams?”

I winced, knowing immediately who this woman was. I guess I’d gone a little overboard in my voicemail to the FART scientist, but in my defense, I panicked. If I’d known she was that young and inexperienced, I wouldn’t have sought her help. Not that she gave it to me anyway.

I felt my face heat and hated her for it. “No, sorry, that had to have been my ridiculous brother. I would never do something like that.”

Her smile froze as if she were suspended in time, judging whether or not I was telling the truth. “Will I be taking my life in my hands by sampling the goods?”

Holy hell, bespectacled woman. She offered it up on a silver platter. I had to take the bait, the smirk second nature and uncontrollable. “Oh, you can sample the goods any time, sweetheart. I guarantee an orgasmic result.”

The post Jingle Balls…Grab ’em quick! appeared first on Author Marika Ray.

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